Sunday, December 26, 2010

Just wanted to pop in real quick to say hello to all of my BBF’s (Best Blogging Friends). We had a very lovely and quiet Christmas here at the Johnson house. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday with your loved ones!

I’ll be back soon with more of the good vintage junk you love and hopefully some fun projects as well. Wishing you all a very bright and shiny New Year!

Friday, December 10, 2010

Congratulations ladies! Please send me your mailing addresses and I will get your prizes in the mail to you tout suite.

I’m a little embarrassed to say that we don’t have any Christmas decorations up yet and haven’t even gotten our tree. This weekend for sure. I’ll leave you with one of my favorite pictures from Christmas a long, long time ago. That’s me front and center, my big brother, Mike with the holsters and my little brother, Devin sitting behind me with the drippy nose. Ahhh, memories! Have a fabulous weekend!.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

I’ve been having so much fun reading about your favorite picks in the comments from my giveaway post that I thought I would share with you a few of my favorite picks. As I am, and have been buying and selling for several years now, I have come across some cool stuff. Some I have kept and will never part with (maybe), and some have gone onto new owners. If you have been reading my blog awhile, you may remember these items.

I picked this awesome and super heavy bad boy off of craigslist. It didn’t look like this when I found it. It was super dirty and I cleaned and painted and stained. Here’s the best part and a little secret. It was free. It was also the most expensive thing I have ever sold. (I know, bragging, sorry:) Kinda miss it, but don’t miss hauling it.

I found this awesome piece in a barn sale of a local antique dealer. I paid a whopping $50 for it. It sold in less than one week at Monticello. Looking back, I think I priced it way too low, but that’s okay. Still love it though.

Found this super cute white lace dress in the basement of a really neat antique shop in Portland. Love it so much and I wore it to the Farm Chicks party last June.

And finally, this cool mirror was found in a box of frames at an auction. It didn’t look like this though, but after I tackled it with some paint stripper, this is what I found. I also found a label on the back that says “patent 1883.” I paid $20 for the box of frames including this mirror. It currently has a place of honor on my mantel. If you’re curious about what it looked like when I bought it, here it is. Definitely not white.

Ugh! Why anyone would do that is beyond me.

There’s still time to enter my American Pickers Giveaway. Just scroll down to my last post and leave a comment. I’ll be back on Friday with the winners. Happy Wednesday!

Monday, December 6, 2010

It’s been awhile since I have done a giveaway on my blog and so I thought it was time. Especially since the nice folks at the History Channel have given me not one but two dvd’s of the awesome show, American Pickers (season one). If you haven’t watched this show, what are you waiting for? It’s awesome and the new season actually starts tonight! Can’t wait to see what treasures Mike and Frank will find and will they ever let Danielle go on a pick with them? I guess I’ll just have to watch to find out.

In addition to the dvd of season 1, the lucky winners will receive one of Martha’s adorable Christmas stars.

So, if you would like to enter this fun giveaway, all you have to do is leave a comment and tell me about one of your most favorite picks (finds). I’ll randomly pick two winners first thing Friday morning. Sound good? Good luck!

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

These were bought on Friday and by the end of the day on Saturday they looked like this.

I guess I should have taken a picture before I packaged them up, but you get the idea. I don’t think I’ve ever completed a project this fast. I had so much fun making them, trying to decide what to embellish them with. These cuties will be headed to Monticello for the Christmas sale which starts not this weekend, but next. I am trying to find a cool wire dress form to hang them from so if you are local and have one for sale, please let me know.

On another note, today is my number 1 girl’s birthday. She is 17 and I can hardly believe it.

Here she is looking all cute before the Homecoming dance this fall. I know I have other pictures of her, but I think she looks so pretty here. I asked her what she wants to do on her special day and her reply was to go to thrift shops. I’ve trained her well. ha ha

Tomorrow being Thanksgiving and all, I just want to wish you a very happy day. Hopefully you will be spending it with friends and family. Off to do some baking. Have a great one!

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Everyone in the house left to do their own thing, so I thought it would be a good time to check in and let you know what I’ve been up to. Basically just the usual stuff, thrifting, re-stocking my booths, but we also spent a little family time with my favorite in-laws last weekend. It was great seeing them again and we all enjoyed a little family outing to the Norse Hall in Portland for a Ludefisk dinner. My folks also came over with my brother and his family to celebrate my kids birthdays. (My son turned 15, October 24th and my daughter turns 17, November 24th)

Here are just some of the goodies I have been finding over the last couple weeks.

Hand painted bird plate from the 50’s.

Sweet little metal lamp with hand painted roses and bows.

Cute vintage sewing bag.

Little bird, love her colors!

Misc. rick rack and flower pin.

Adorable vintage horses print in rustic wood frame.

I was so happy to find a bag of my favorite tin reflectors as I was completely out of them and wanted to make some Christmas ornaments like I did last year. You can see them on this post.

I got these adorable stars from the Holiday Heritage Faire at the Mission Mill Museum in Salem yesterday. They were made by my sweet friend Martha, and I am keeping these to put on my tree this year.

And finally, something quite unusual.

A lovely oil painting of Zsa Zsa Gabor from 1967. I don’t know what made me buy this, but I was sort of drawn to it for some reason. Hopefully someone else will be too, as it will be making it’s way to my mall space soon.

Speaking of my mall space, things have been hopping at both malls lately with lots of sales so I’m super happy about that. Today I’ve been busy packaging up some small items for a Christmas display I’m planning. I don’t usually find a lot of cool vintage Christmas items like my good friend Mitzi (who by the way, has some awesome vintage Christmas in her booth at Stars), but I have collected a few small things and have been packaging up a lot of jewelry and other things that would make great stocking stuffers.

Thought I would end this post with a recent picture of my Stars booth. I forgot to take one of my Monticello space, but will do that soon. Hope you all have a fabulous and fun weekend!

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Back in August, my hubby started a little project we call the “garden shed.” We had wanted one for years. Ever since we sold the gigantic play structure that came with the house, we wanted to build a shed in it’s place. We had the plans, which were approved by both the HOA and the city years ago, but life got in the way and we did nothing. Here is what the spot looked like for a long time.

Actually, that is a very cleaned up version. For a long time, we had a huge pile of yard debris there. We are really lucky that even though we live in a somewhat newer neighborhood, we have lots of nice big trees for privacy. Unfortunately, we could still see the neighbor’s trampoline.

Here’s my cute honey, still smiling. Can you see how our grape vines have grown over the neighbor’s trampoline?

My number #1 boy helped out a lot in the early stages.

Coming along.

Getting closer.

And voila, only three months later we have the completed garden shed. I am so happy it’s finished. Of course, I need to do a little planting, put up a window box, and jazz up the outside a bit. We painted it to match the house and it really blends in nicely in the backyard, I think. Lest you think I am going to decorate the inside, I need to let you know that this is strictly a garden shed. No cute antique bed or anything fun is going inside. The good news is that having this shed will free up a lot of space in the garage for more of my junk that is currently residing in the house.

Okay, not the most thrilling post, but I’m pretty excited that this is one project that is finally finished. Somewhat. We are having beautiful weather up here in the PNW! I think I’ll go outside and do a little painting. Hope you’re having a fabulous day where ever you are.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Several weeks ago I spied a cute little white cabinet with vintage glass knobs at Monticello where I have my booth. I looked at it a couple times and left. After I got home I was still thinking about it. Now, if you could see my house, you would know that I don’t need anything in the way of little cabinets, but I just adore them. Can’t help it. So the next week I went back and bought that little cabinet.

Haven’t decided what I’m going to do with it or where I’ll put it, but I know it’s a keeper. Most of the stuff I buy is for re-sale, but every once in awhile (okay, if I’m being honest, lots of times) I will find something just for me.

Yesterday after I finished fluffing my booth at Monticello, I took a few minutes to look around. So glad I did because I found this (Okay, I know it’s not white, but clear is close, right?)

I just knew it would have to come home with me. No hesitation this time. It was a great price too. After my dealer discount, only $30. It’s a murano glass mirror in perfect condition. I know that because I first saw one in Rachel Ashwell’s Shabby Chic Home book.

Her’s is a bit bigger than mine and so gorgeous.

I did a little checking and found one on ebay for sale with a buy it now price of $475, so I’m thinking I got a great deal!

Speaking of Rachel Ashwell, I may have mentioned before how much I love her and her design esthetic. Discovering her first book was like an epiphany and a beginning to my own decorating adventures. Recently Ms. Ashwell was at a show in Northern California signing copies of her newest book, (which of course I have and love) and I toyed with the idea of driving down there just so I could meet her. A little stalkerish, I admit, but I am seriously hoping that she will deem us Pacific Northwesterners worthy of a visit someday soon. Can you imagine how awesome it would be if she graced us with an appearance at Farm Chicks next year? I, for one, would be thrilled!

Hope you enjoyed my little White Wednesday post! Have an awesome rest of the week!

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

I know I’ve been neglecting my blog lately. Honestly, I just haven’t been doing anything blog worthy. Now that show season is over for me, I have been really lazy. Not even shopping very much which is unusual for me. I did go to a few thrift stores and hit a few estate sales last weekend, but didn’t find very much. Today I made a little trip to both of my mall spaces and spruced, fluffed, and brought in a few new things.

At Monticello I had sold a cute desk, so things were looking a little messy. A good time to completely rearrange everything, which is exactly what I did. I brought in this cute and shabby vanity which you may remember from a recent post.

Also brought in an adorable vintage aqua fan

cute pink hat

sweet vintage cottage style chair (love the white paint with a little green showing in some of the chippy spots)

I absolutely adore this embroidered pillow! I can’t imagine the time it took someone to make it. It depicts one of my most favorite things: a quaint cottage by the water.

I brought a few things into my Stars booth as well, but unfortunately forgot to take a picture of some of them. Here’s what I remembered to shoot.

Little shabby black shelf

great chippy vintage vanity mirror frame (would make a great chalkboard!)

Cute little handmade chair/shelf. Would be adorable in a child’s room holding some vintage kids books.

I also brought in that little funky hanging light fixture on the right.

and finally, a cute vintage bell. This is the kind that would go over a door in a store so the proprietor would know when people are coming or going.

It reminds me of the movie, “You’ve got Mail,” because there is a scene where Meg Ryan’s character is closing her adorable little children’s book store and the last thing she does before she leaves the store for good, is remove the door bell like this one.

That’s it for me for now. I hope to come back again with a White Wednesday post as I have a couple things to share. TTFN!

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Last night I got together with my college roommates. It had been years since we were all together and we had so much fun getting caught up. We all brought pictures to look through and let me say that there was a lot of laughing going on. Picture 80’s hair and fashion. Here’s what we looked like 25 years ago.

That’s me on the left, Yvette in the middle and Pavla on the right. I had just cut my hair short. We used to love to get dressed up and go out to parties or dancing at the Beaver Hut together. We made a lot of memories in that apartment.

Here we are now.

Did I mention I’m a red head now? Wow! What a difference 25 years makes! Notice how I have a beverage in my hand in both pictures? ha ha These girls and I have history. They know lots of embarrassing stories about me, and I them, and we still all love each other. Reminds me of the song I learned in Girl Scouts. “Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver and the other gold.” These girls are definitely golden!

Friday, October 1, 2010

My Mom called me the other day wondering if I was okay. She said that I haven’t been blogging much lately and she was worried about me. My Mom lives less than 5 minutes from me and keeps up with what I’m doing by reading my blog. I’m such a bad daughter . I guess I should call my Mom more often.

I have been busy doing lots of things. Had so much fun last Saturday at the Barn House sale. It was great seeing everyone, and so fun to see the show from the working side, as opposed to the shopping side. The weather was so beautiful and customers came and shopped like crazy. I didn’t take one picture, but of course, lovely Isabel did. You can see them here.

I have been doing a little shopping myself and have picked up a few things here and there.

Got this cute pink cabinet at a church sale last week.

Found this cabinet

and this one

and this one

from a sweet gal on craigslist.

This project vanity was found at a garage sale I just happened by while out shoe shopping with my number one girl. The little end table on top I found at a thrift store, and the box with the drawer (actually an older cash box) was found at a Monday garage sale. I also got a bunch of furniture casters there too for cheap.

Here’s what else I’ve been doing.

*bringing new finds into my mall spaces

*golfing and lunch with a good friend to celebrate her birthday

*attempting to clean house and tackle the giant pile of laundry that never seems to go down

Saturday, September 18, 2010

On my last post I mentioned that I was going to do the Coburg Antique Faire. Well, that show has come and gone and I didn’t get to show any of my projects and the few pictures I did take, didn’t turn out too great. That said. it was a really good sale for me as I doubled the amount I sold last year which is always a good thing. It was fun to see friends old and new and I want to send a big shout out thank you to Jill for providing me and Isabel with a place to rest our weary heads. Thanks also to those of you who stopped by to tell me how much you enjoy reading my blog. It really means the world to me to hear such sweet comments.

The weather has changed here in the PNW and we are now in full on rainy Fall mode. But the weather didn’t dampen my spirits (pun intended) enough to keep me from hitting some sales this weekend. The first few sales I went to were duds and I was losing a little hope that I would find anything good, but I ventured on and found a couple good sales. Here is the loot I scored over the weekend along with a couple items I found earlier in the week at a thrift store.

The table with with the drawer and no top, the center cabinet, white cart, carved mirror, vintage blue and cream ticking curtains and pink bedspread with pom pom trim all came from one sale. The other mirror, wicker, glass and wood tray, typewriter table and pink rose sheet came from the thrift store and the hard to see wood cubby cabinet on the left, I actually pulled off the wall in the garage at an estate sale.

I am super excited about all my finds, but the find of the weekend has to be this

I got this cute (not old) wood and glass display case at a neighborhood garage sale today for a steal. Just had to add the glass knob and supports for the glass shelves and it is good as new. Still trying to decide if I will keep or sell this one. If I keep it, I’ll have to trade out another cabinet I have. Decisions, decisions. What’s a cabinet loving girl to do?

Tomorrow and the coming days will be spent working on projects and getting my much neglected house cleaned up a bit. So glad shows are over for me for the year. Now I can concentrate on getting my mall spaces stocked up. I made visits to both spaces last week and they are looking a bit better, but there is definitely room for more goodies.

Next weekend is the season finale sale at Barn House. Isabel and I will be there helping out, so I hope you will come out and say hi and check out all the fabulous goodies Joe, Jermonne and Cindy are putting together. Rain or shine, it’s sure to be a fabulous sale. Hope to see some of you there! Have a lovely rest of the weekend!